Ctrl + Alt+ Delete: Clemson 30 mile Equathon

My alarm was set for 4:20 am, but it never went off. I was awake at 3:30 am on my own accord. The cats and pups were all snuggled up with me and it took real effort to extricate myself from the warm covers and fuzzy fur.

It was pitch black outside and a cold 40 degrees. My truck's headlights were the only thing illuminating the barnyard and I was shocked that I got the trailer hooked up in one go. This gave me some extra time to get Gem and I looked at my watch as I reached into the truck door to grab the flashlight that lives there. It was 5:10 am. I needed to leave the barn by 6 am to get to the ride on time.

My hand reached out and searched for the flashlight that I knew was always there. Except this time it wasn't. Dusty had last used it for his run at Biltmore. He is notorious for never putting things back where they belong and then later getting angry when he can't find something. I got annoyed, but the trailer was already hooked up and I had a flashlight on my cell phone, so I went out to get Gem.

I walked the perimeter of the pasture calling out for her and using the wimpy light from my cell phone flash. One lap around and I began to understand why you can't find a lost horse in the wilderness at night. I then headed into the center and found her herd mates. No Gem. That is when I heard it. A soft pounding of hooves just to my right. I shined my light, but it was useless. I called out to her and she squealed in delight in response. More hoof beats. She was circling around me squealing and farting in glee.

My shoes were soaked through from the wet grass, I was chilled to the bone and I knew that had I had a real flashlight I could spot her and follow her with the light. I lost it.

Tears of anger stung my eyes and I cursed Dusty's lack of putting things away, my damn mare for being bad (Yes, she was being bad. No, she didn't know I had a time limit, where we were going or that I had paid money for this ride, but she did know we were going somewhere given my appearance before dawn and she did know to not run away from me like that), and the fact that now I was late. I tried to call Dusty to get him to bring me the flashlight and save a bit of time, but he didn't answer.

I stormed out of the pasture, ran to the truck and drove the whole thing home. Once in front of the house I slammed through the front door, threw open the bedroom door and, close to foaming at the mouth, told Dusty that if he didn't get his ass out of bed right that moment nobody was going anywhere. He crawled out of bed and I let it all out. I was furious that he couldn't just put the damn flashlight back in the truck. That he couldn't take his phone to bed in case I needed to reach him.

Wyatt was roused from his sleep, poor kid, and we all went bac to the barn. Dusty called the RM and asked if it was ok if we came a little late. Ride start was at 8 and vetting was at 7. At this point we would be lucky to arrive by 7:30.

I went back out to the pasture, this time with a flashlight, and spotted Gem immediately. She took off, but I was able to stand still and spot her with it watching the glint off her eye. She circled around me, bucking, galloping, farting, and squealing. I cursed her name.

Eventually, after another 30 minutes, she walked right over to me blowing hard and arching her neck. I slipped her halter on and walked her out of the pasture. She loaded up and we were finally off.

Thankfully, everyone needed to vet in that morning and I managed to sneak her in at the back of the line, vet her through with all As and tack her up before the start. I put her front boots on her and left the hinds bare. Clemson is our old stomping grounds and she could easily do it all bare if not for the crack growing out of the front right. I changed into dry socks and shoes which improved my mood ten fold and got ready to ride.

I think this is now one of my favorite Gemmie pictures.

The runners trying to keep warm as the ride start approached

At 8 am the 30 and 15 mile Ride and Tie participants were off and then at 8:05 am they let me go. We would be doing the green 6.5 mile loop to the red 9 mile loop and back to camp.

Last spring Gem and I waited 5 minutes to start and then never saw another horse or runner again. This time, as we left the road and entered the woods about 1/4 mile from the start, we not only passed some runners, but also saw their horses waiting for them tied to some trees. It was really neat seeing the horses looking back for their runner. I could tell those horses who knew their job as they were all napping with a foot cocked and looked back. Those who weren't so aware were starting to get antsy and fidgeting against the tree.

We passed the horses and Gem got confused. She tried to stop, but I told her she would see them again and urged her on. About 1/4 mile later and we got passed by the front runners. There was one man-man team who was being extremely competitive and they came charging up behind us. I pulled over and let them pass which would end up being a routine for the morning.

Gem was not going to be left behind. She charged along that trail keeping up and ignoring my attempts to slow her down. We were going along alternating trotting and cantering and then they pulled over to tie. Gem was again confused as I told her she needed to keep moving. I got her to move out, but then she decided she couldn't possible move out on those trails. I mean, come on. There were roots, rocks, tree stumps, dips and climbs.

Of course as soon as another ride and tie horse came up to us and we pulled off, she would charge headlong after them at break neck speed. It got old.

To clarify, I am not afraid to go fast over those trails. I don't mind Gem feeling good and moving out, but she must do it in a safe and sane manner. When she locks onto the horse in front of her, she only looks at their butt and ignores all else. Rocks? Roots? Small dips in the trail? She sees none of it and will trip, stumble and slip her way around with no room for thought. That is dangerous.

At one point, about 3.5 miles in, we were once again chasing down another horse when I saw a dip in the trail. A tree root had created a drop about 18"-2 feet in height and in the past we have always navigated this at a controlled trot or walk. This time she was in full canter and took it like a cross country down bank. I laughed and asked her out loud if she was now an eventing horse. At this point I said screw it. You want to careen around like a mad man? Fine. But when that horse pulls over for a break, you will not be allowed to slow down at all. You want to be an idiot? You can be an idiot for all 15 miles.

We travelled like this and would chat it up with the riders who caught us. I really enjoyed talking with one woman who was both an excellent rider and runner and was on a horse who knew his job and performed it beautifully. They were an inspiration to watch. Gem and I cantered along side of them down the gravel access road quite a ways until she pulled over to tie.

After the gravel road, we dove back into the woods and were moving along fast, but now more in control. I was finally able to unclench my jaw and let the reins out slightly to ease the burning in my shoulders and neck. That is when I felt it. A slight wobble on her front left. I looked down and her boot had flipped up over her hoof just like the front right had back at Biltmore at a fast pace.

I pulled over and got off. She was steaming and started to paw as runners came and passed us. I think everyone, both on the ground and mounted, asked if I needed help. I didn't want to slow anyone down from their ride and passed, but was so thankful they asked. One guy nearly insisted that he help, but at that point I knew there was no help and told him to enjoy his run!

The boot would not come off. The cables would not stretch enough to allow the shell to slide back over her hoof and into place. I tried to spin it around and get it off the back of her leg, but nope. The captivator would not budge.  I pulled, pushed and twisted to no avail. We were screwed.

It was a good thing that I knew this trail so well because we were 5.5 miles into the ride and would have been in for a long hike had I not known I could continue on green back to camp only 1.5 miles away. We were nearly a the junction of the green and red loop. I called Dusty and asked if he could meet me at the road where green and red split and see if he could get the thing off. He agreed and I started hiking forwards to meet him as he came backwards.

He met as at the road and I held Wyatt as he tried to pry the boot off using a hoof pick. It didn't work.  We would need to go back to camp. I suggested wire cutters and a strong fire to melt the damn things to a puddle of red plastic.  I propped Wyatt up on her back and we walked back out of the woods. Wyatt was stoked to be riding in the woods for the first time and giggled the entire was back.

Once back to camp, I marched over and told them I was pulling. Dusty thought I should go back out barefoot, reconnect to where green and red split and finish the ride. Maybe I should have, but I was done. All the frustration from the morning, her behavior under saddle and now this came bubbling to the surface and I was just done. I felt terrible because that meant Dusty wouldn't get his run and Gem now had her first ever pull, but I had zero left in me to go back out and start again.

In the end, we ended up having to unscrew the captivator to take the cables out and get the boot off. Gem was covered in dry sweat, but was otherwise unfazed. We vetted out and the ride vet shook his head saying that she didn't look like she had worked at all that morning.

I tried to get Dusty to go out and run his loop anyway, but he declined. He too was in a less than enthusiastic mood and we agreed to just call it quits and count our losses. We packed up and headed home.

Of course once home we realized that we had left one of Wyatt's toys behind and then couldn't find his shoes either. And the next day I would find that my red mohair girth was MIA too. Saturday should have just never happened.

What did I learn? Some days just aren't meant to be. Renegades don't work for Gem in a competitive setting. Pulling when both you and your horse are doing well really sucks.

Oh and Wyatt looks really snazzy in my shades.

Lessons Learned at Pow Wow

I did a lot of things differently for this 50 from the Barefoot Shine and Wine. Some of them went super fantastic and others went horribly wrong. 

Hydration

My biggest concern for Gem was her hydration. At Barefoot I watched in dismay as each vet check reported worsening parameters. Her pulse and CRI stayed great throughout so nobody seemed overly concerned and we completed just fine, but still it was sub optimal and I wanted to be proactive about it. So what did I do differently? A lot really and it showed in her solid a's for every hydration parameter at every hold, even following a tough 25 mile first loop with no water available (besides the deep flooded creeks which I wasn't stopping at to allow drinking) until 14 miles in. 

• During the drive I stopped to offer her a wet mash. I hadn't thought to do this before and she has historically never drank during trailering. The drive was just about 6 hours and I didn't want her going that long without drinking. I poured grain into her bucket and topped it off with water to just over the grain line. No time for it to really even soak, so she had to drink to get the grain. It worked and she emptied the entire bucket.

• Different electrolytes in paste form in a syringe so I knew she was getting it even if she didn't eat well at the hold

• Wet mashes at each hold. She gobbled it down at the first hold, ate half at the second and barely touched it at the end. She did finish the bucket over night. 

• Stopped at every single opportunity on trail and let her drink until she stopped, but didn't let her play with the water. Drink or move on.  (I've always done this, but it is worth noting as it is part of my strategy)

• Also gave her a feeding pan of soaked alfalfa which I keep filled and wet with about 3 inches of water at the bottom from the moment we got in camp. She emptied that thing several times and even drank the flavored water at the bottom. I only had access to a compressed bale and it was super dusty, but after soaking it I think it worked to my advantage. She loved the stuff and the smashed particles from the compression collected in the water at the bottom making it very, very tasty water.

• Carrots. Lots and lots of very wet baby carrots. Loads of natural electrolytes, water and she loves them. I hand fed her a third of a bag at each hold.

Nutrition

• Gem was offered her typical grain from our barn, It isn't the best and is locally milled. Too much molasses for my likings, but I don't have a choice here unless I want to pay for stall board and buy my own grain. Until a problem arises to make it a necessity, I can't really justify the added expense each month. Once the grass starts to grow again, she won't be getting any grain at all. Anyway...so each hold she got her usually grain. 

• I offered her a bucket of wet mash at each hold.

• She also got a bucket of the dry grain. I've been told that the saliva from chewing is needed to prevent ulcers, so I wanted to give her the choice to crunch away which she did the second loop and at the finish.

• Carrots. See above.

• Soaked alfalfa from a compressed bale. I will be buying compressed alfalfa for all my rides if I can find it. She loved it and it worked really well. She only ever gets alfalfa during a ride, but I start giving her GrandVite the week leading up to the ride. I've always mixed the powder in with some broken up alfalfa cubes and a little water to make it stick. It is a nice treat and she loves. It also lets her get used to alfalfa in small quantities.

• Coastal hay. She barely touched it at all this time. It didn't look that great to be honest. We took it from the hay loft at the barn and its the first thing I've been disappointed with at this barn. 

Pace

• My biggest goal was a completion (yay!!), but my second one was to ride my own ride. I've always been so timid out there that I get caught up with others and lose this part. I tried this at the beginning by starting after the first wave, but that didn't work. Once we fell I was alone in my own bubble for many miles it is was perfect. Granted we were on sandy open roads so she didn't have all the bare wood (sticks, logs, trees) to spook at as is her norm, but still I was able to rate her pretty well after those first 10 miles and felt really, really good about it.

• We covered it with an average 6.8 mph pace per my garmin which was only a bit off from reality. I think we did a little over 7 mph in real life which is exactly where I want to be right now. I let her open it up and we spent a lot of our moving time hovering around 9-10 mph, but took breaks to walk, eat and drink so it lowered to around 7. While the winner finished in 4 hours 29 minutes, I think this pace is perfect for us right now and maybe for forever. 

Horse Attire

• She started and finished in her advantage saddle with a mohair cinch, Thinline Endurance pad, and typical halter bridle. No rubs, no sore spots, and a perfectly even sweat pattern.

• The Thinline does something weird. Maybe it is stiff to start our heats up and molds to her back I dont' know, but each ride it starts off looking fine then slips by around mile 2-3. Once I get off and fix it, it doesn't move again. Something I need to remind myself of.

• Barefoot. This is interesting. She has gone over tons of rocky trails and did the last 50 bare on loads of rocks. Not a single chip. This was 39 miles of sandy roads and she did great as always hoof wise. However, when I looked closely at them the following day she had really worn them down. They are nearly squared off at her break over point and look odd for her. If more sand is in our future I may need to do some serious thinking. I don't think her bare tootsies would hold up well for a barefoot 100 in the sand. I think they would wear down too much. Will have to think on this one...

Rider Attire

• Gloves. Wow did I love my new gloves. I've actually never ridden with gloves before and I was worried, but when it was only 16 degrees in the morning I was ready to risk it. Not only were my hands warm and toasty, but I had an excellent grip on those reins. Even with holding her back just like at Barefoot, I didn't have a single sore spot on my fingers and no blistering. I won't ever ride without them again or at least not for the first loop.

• Camelbak. This keeps working out super well. I drank all 2L between the first two loops and stay very well hydrated without the need for a bottle or pack. I even used the back pack portion to shove my store covers in at the trot by. 

• Running shoes. I continue to prefer these over typical riding boots/shoes and really wish I could have run some for Gem's sake. I will get into why I didn't in a bit. I probably should have worn my winter waterproof boots to being with and that would have save me a lot of problems down the line, but I didn't think of it. 

• Stirrup Covers. I know. Nothing new on race day, but I didn't think adding comfy fleecy covers to the leathers would be an issue. Boy was I wrong. Either I did something wrong putting them on or I need to get used to them, but something was definitely off with my legs until I removed them. I felt trapped and my ankles were in a wonky position that made them scream in agony by mile 4. By then end my perennials were shot and I could barely walk. A week out and my left leg still isn't working normally. I used them to avoid getting rubs (which I ever had anyway)and ended up with a nasty friction burn to my right leg just below my knee.

All in all I am super happy with the ride and how Gem performed. My performance was not so great. I think it had a lot to do with how frozen I was to begin the ride, My feet were block of ice for 14 miles and I am pretty sure I held them in a weird place for that entire time. Couple that with new covers and a shorter stirrup (nothing new on race day, nothing new on race day) and I was just off. 

Biltmore 25 mile LD 7/12/14: Review

First, sorry for the complete lack of pictures. I took my cell phone with me, but I wasn't able to let go of my death grip for the entire beginning and then I just plum forgot.

I'm just going to list through some things that went really well and some things that didn't. My next post will be all gear related. This is just some general observations and things to continue doing and some to improve upon.

The Good

Hydration- this has always been a bad spot for me. I just am not someone who always has a drink in hand. But I knew I always get dehydrated on rides so I forced a liter of water in me on the drive up and another 3L Friday afternoon before bed plus some sweet tea. It did a world of good and I will make sure to do this in the future. I also rode with the Camelbak and while I didn't drink as much as I should have, I drank about 1.5L during the ride plus some coconut water at the hold and was never headachy or tired due to lack of hydration.

Gem also did well hydrating. She tanked up overnight and while she didn't drink the first loop I wasn't surprised. It wasn't hot out and she usually doesn't start drinking until mile 10 more so. She drank a half bucket at the hold and drank every chance she got on trail even from a mud puddle. Her hydrations scores and gut sounds improved from the hold to the end as well.

Having crew - oh wow what an awesome thing this was. To have endurance folks crew for you is such a blessing. I was able to come into the hold and end with ice water ready and people grabbing my mare ready to pull tack, hold her, sponge, scrape etc...I'm still unsure how on earth you do it all alone.

Going Back To Camp - Gem had never been in this type of crewing situation before and she was too concerned about everything to relax. T made the comment that she had to take her gelding back to camp the day before for his holds (they completed the 55 mile ride) and that solidified my decision. Gem did great at camp and drank and took a nap. Depending on where camp is situated from vet in at other rides, this will happen again.

Gem - for 90% of the ride she was a star. She went past hikers, bikes, segways, kayakers, under bridges etc... without an issue. She was in good spirits and had a willing attitude the entire ride. I never once felt her give up or want to stop. She drank like a champ when needed as well.

Gear - pretty much everything worked great with a few minor things I will mention below. The Advantage saddle continues to rock and she had equal sweat marks and no sore spots anywhere. The Camelbak was great to have (see above) and she was bare on all 4 without any missteps, slides or soreness.

Camping - this was my first experience having friends at camp and it was so much more enjoyable. Having people to talk to and share with was great.

E-Lytes - I'm glad I had all scenarios planned for. Gem didn't eat at the hold and I wanted a half dose of e-lytes in her before we headed out. I grabbed the applesauce and the hubs syringed it into her while I munched on some nachos. Had I not planned for her not eating, I would have gone without which would not have been a wise decision. I went with the supplement she usually gets and it worked great.

The Not So Good/Bad

Nutrition - Gem didn't eat. She never eats. She ate her breakfast and ate through 1/2 a large bale of hay the day before. But she didn't touch her food or hay at all at the hold. She drank and took a nap, but that's it. Once back to the crew area she munched on a bit of Alfalfa and she did manage to eat some alfalfa cubes and carrots. I'm not sure if I should worry about this or not. Some say she just isn't going far enough. We will see.

Trotting Out - Ugh. Gem is going to get herself eliminated at a hold one of these days due to a poor trot out. I go jogging with her regularly. I have taught her that when I say "Ready, Trot!" she trots immediately beside me. But get her at a hold and she goes so slow that it makes her look lame. Thankfully she trotted fine back toward the vet so she was cleared, but man would I have been angry had we been pulled!

The Start - I have done 2 other LDs with Gem and neither time was she anywhere near as much of a basket case as she was the first few miles this weekend. So something had to be different. There were a few things that lined up to make this happen:

 1) it was a controlled start so there wasn't any letting others go that much ahead of us
 2) it started out on a flat double wide track with horses in front and behind us and she was in full race mode
3) we walked. A lot and very slowly. S was leading her mare on foot. Gem got more and more worked up the longer we kept that slow pace up and eventually she was going to explode.

I'll have to keep an eye on this in the future and see how she goes out the next time. I don't want to teach her race brain at all and have no interest in getting caught up with the front runners, but trying to keep her back at a walk and fighting her is no good either. She will get just as sour with me pulling on her mouth as she would running herself into the ground. There will have to be a happy medium somewhere.

In the end everything worked out great. We completed sound and in good form. She made me so proud and I even had a well known rider come up to me at the end and tell me that Gem looked like a really fun horse to ride. It was an amazing compliment. I can control my riding but I can't make her eat and that is my biggest concern with her right now. Her gut sounds checked in fine, so maybe she just isn't hungry enough?

Biltmore 25 Mile LD Ride 7/12/14: Ride Story

BEEP BEEP BEEP! Your eyes meander open and you notice it is still very much dark outside. Your sleep muddled brain wonders why on earth you are waking up this early, but soon the synapses fire and you remember: it is ride day!! You throw the blanket back, call out a way too chipper good morning to your fellow riders and get dressed in a hurry. Time to get ready!

As you step out of the trailer, the cool crisp mountain morning air hits you. Crap, you forgot a light jacket, but never mind once you get moving you know you will warm up quickly. There is much to do this morning and only an hour to get it all done. First up: feed Gemmie. You mix up some grain, sweet feed and supplements with a pinch of salt added and hold the bucket while she eats. She knows something is up. The air is filled with sleepy people and excitement from the horses as the camp begins to wake up and get moving. She eats most of it, but leaves some behind. You remember to throw her an extra flake of hay and are happy to note one empty water bucket and one half full one from overnight. She is tanked up and ready to go today. You manage to shove a banana down your own gullet and drink more water to start the day.

She is a little amped up while tacking, but you get it done and mount on up to walk slowly to the start line. Your riding partners, M and S, mount up as well and you head off to the start line. S needs to adjust some tack, so she hops off and hand walks the rest of the way. Gemmie is all business underneath you and power walks to the start. Once there the energy of all those horses milling around waiting for the controlled start is just amazing. Gem is pacing up and down and so you head off to the back corner to get a little space. Once the trail is opened up, you head out and trot past the control judges/vets to make sure all is looking well and head down the first section of trail.

This first loop is 11.9 miles all on the blue trail. It begins by going alongside camp by the river and is a double wide part gravel part dirt road. S is hand walking her mare out of camp and M's mare is so well behaved - she is just a steady mare. A little ways down the road and Gem is getting really annoyed at the slow pace. She is pulling your arms out of their sockets and you begin to feel bad that you are ripping off her face. Eventually you yell back to S that either you have to move on without her or she needs to mount up and get going. She decides to mount up and Gem takes this to mean she can finally go!

The first 3 miles fly by in a blur. The pace is maddeningly fast and you worry that Gem won't last 25 miles doing it this way. She is still tugging at you badly and you are having to circle and fight her a lot. At mile 3 you remark again to your friends that if she doesn't settle in soon, you will have to go on ahead alone. Mile 4 brings a big steep uphill on single track and this finally calms Gem down. There are no horses up ahead visible anymore and she takes a spot behind S.

The blue loop is through a lot of forested trails mostly single track which is Gem's favorite. The morning continues to be overcast and cooler although you note that the humidity in the trees is climbing. There is a water trough up ahead, but nobody drinks. You know Gem well enough to know she won't bypass water when she is thirsty, so you don't worry about her at this point.

Thankfully, the trails are beautifully marked and there is little concern about getting lost on this loop. The trails become very muddy and there are huge puddles everywhere that make the going slower than you'd like. It gives Gem a chance to collect her thoughts though and things settle in nicely. You alternate between trotting and some walk breaks where the footing isn't so great. Everyone is having a good time and the miles fly by uneventfully.

The loop crosses its tracks again and you are back on the double wide gravel/dirt trail heading into camp. 3 miles to go and the horses know where they are heading. S's mare picks up a break neck trot pace and Gem begins to have a hard time keeping up. You look at your watch and it registers 4:30 min/mile pace. Gem is cantering to keep up, but isn't asking to slow or breathing all that hard. You ask S to walk the last 0.5 or 1 mile into camp to let her heart rate slow and she agrees. Once you are close to camp, the trail makes a hard right turn and runs into the backside of the starting area. The horses are not happy to turn away from camp when they are oh so close!

Just up ahead are the in timers, ready to take your number. Thankfully T and a new friend A are standing by ready to help out all they can. You jump of Gem and see the hubs and W waiting for you with a big grin. You yell a grand hello and march Gem over to your crew area to strip tack and sponge. That break neck entry into camp worked up a hardy sweat. T is amazing and helps sponge Gem down with ice water and scrape it off. You check her pulse and it is already down in the mid 40s (criteria is 64 bpm) so off to the vet you go. She vets in with a pulse of 40 and is a stubborn mule for the trot out away from the vet, but trots back on fire. He remarks that she almost looked lame going out she was trotting so badly, but made up for it on her return trip back. Darn mare! She gets mostly a's on her report card although her hydration status gets B+ and her gut sounds get a B. Not surprising since she didn't eat or drink the entire loop. The vet remarks that you aren't riding her hard enough and you should have come in way sooner on that loop. You just smile and nod and thank him for the compliment. You have 40 minutes until loop 2.

Back at the crewing area, M states that her mare's heart rate was really high coming in and she is 3 minutes behind you in out time. You are okay waiting 3 minutes, but the only thing you really care about is leaving on time. Gem is too concerned with everything going on around her in the crewing region and isn't eating or drinking so you make the decision to walk her back to camp and put her in her pen. It will eat up 14 minutes total of the hold there and back, but the decision is worth it in the end. She still doesn't eat much (just a few mouthfuls of hay) but you get her e-lytes in her and she downs an entire bucket of water plus takes a 10 minute nap. Perfect! Having her in her pen also gives you the ability to eat some nachos, drink some coconut water and go to the bathroom.

40 minutes flies by and you are soon trekking back to the crew area. Once there you tell your partners there are 5 minutes remaining and begin to tack back up. But then M heads off toward the bathroom and you are dismayed to leave the hold nearly 10 minutes late.

This second loop is 14 miles long and begins and ends on a black access road to cross the river and picks up a large yellow loop. Off down gravel road again we go, but Gem is more sensible this time. She is eager and willing, but not pulling finally. S is having some issues with wanting to leave camp, but finally everyone's horses get their head on straight and off we go. The first loop took about a half hour longer than you wanted plus you lost 10 minutes at the hold, so this loop needs a good pace. M is worried about her mare coming in too hot again, but you are sure if you avoid the break neck speeds and just go a steady pace she would be fine.

The footing isn't so great and you end up coming up on some highly people populated sections of trails that demand a walk. The time is ticking by and you have a long way to go yet. The sun has also decided to make an appearance now as well so you know this loop is going to get hot. Fortunately, there is a lot of water offered up for the horses and Gem doesn't miss a single one. She guzzles down at each and you are feeling better about her.

You eventually make your way over a cement bridge and back onto single track forest trails, some of which you recall from the hunter pace you did here. You see a plate marking 5 miles down and glance at your watch. It is getting late.

Gem is doing amazing under you and by mile 18 she begins to tune you out. The going is slow and sporadic. S's mare is getting foot sore and she is hugging the shoulder of the trail, but this region isn't maintained so she is having to avoid ditches, rocks and logs and such. Gem begins to get really ticked off with the start/stop pacing and just wants to go! Around this time you remark to S that Gem is really unhappy with the pacing. Either it needs to steady out or you need to depart.

The footing then improves some and off everyone goes. Gem keeps rushing to the front and is feeling strong and willing. M's horse is beginning to lag behind and tire and S's mare is hugging the rim again. You decide to stick with the group and finish together.

Finally you cross the cement bridge, leave the yellow loop behind and get back on the access trail with 3 miles and an hour to go. You keep nervously glancing at the watch to make sure you will complete in time. There is no way you are going this far with this much horse under you and not making the time!

Eventually camp comes into view and you make it back to the in timers with 30 minutes to spare. You dump tack and immediately vet in. Gem isn't even sweaty at all so you know she will be under pulse (60 bpm required). She vets in at 54 bpm, almost all A's with improved gut sounds and trots out sound. You get a completion!!!!

You head straight back to camp to put her in her pen. She stretches, drinks and munches some hay and is looking amazing. The hubby congratulates you and eventually everyone makes it back to camp with 3 completions. :)

You are so happy, a little tired, and very proud of your mare. She looks ready to go out for another loop and you know she has a 50 in her. Everyone eats lunch together and then you pack up camp to go home.

Your first thought: When can we do this again?!

Winner! And Ride Recap

“The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails.”

 

- William Arthur Ward

 

 

And the winner is......... Stephanie! She guessed 1 hr 47 minutes which was only 4 minutes faster than what we came in at :) Way to go!! Thank you so so so much for all who placed a guess. I wish I could send you all a prize, but you will just have to wait until the next give away. Stephanie - your book will be heading your way soon. Thanks for playing!!!

 

Now for the boring recap :)

 

Gem:

Considering how little training we have actually done she did super well. I can't remember the last time we did 9 miles, let alone at a "race" pace. She finished with energy to spare and was happy and sound.

 

She wasn't acting tired at all until about mile 6.5, but a little of that was just plain boredom too. She isn't your typical endurance horse who just loves the trail so much. She gets bored. I like the stops in an endurance ride because it gives her something to refocus on and then when we move out again she is back to the task at hand. Better fitness will help this too.

 

I don't know why, but she really has upped her bravery. She led quite a bit and even trotted out front a ways.

 

She quickly reminded me just how competitive she truly is. Each time we saw a horse in front of us, she would lock on and was not happy until we passed them. She would pull and pull and try to gallop on by and then was content to go back to a trot once we left them behind. Silly mare!

 

Her back was not sore at all afterward which was a big relief. Her legs were solid with no swelling. I had meant to go to the barn last night to check on her, but I was hungry and decided to eat dinner instead. I can't remember the last time I actually ate dinner. Usually it is just a bowl of cereal at 9 pm.

 

I'm glad she is barefoot. I let her pick her footing and even on the gravel roads when Pete would hug the shoulder, she would just walk on down the middle without a care. Her feet are so solid. I do want to get some boots for her, but I have put them on the back burner for now.

 

She ate every chance she could along the trail. Greedy mare. There was a creek crossing and she ate the ferns instead of drinking. She didn't drink back at the trailer at the end. Once we were back to the barn, she went straight to the pond and had a big, long drink. She has never had a drinking issue before and will even drink out of a puddle if she is thirsty, so I am guessing she just wasn't thirsty enough.

 

Gear:

Same as listed on my gear page. I have given up on crossing the billets because it did not seem to help. I have figured out that I have been tightening her girth too much. Think of a rubber band stretched over a can. The more you stretch it, the more likely it is to go boinging off the skinny top of the can. I loosened it one hole on either side. We had some short, but seriously steep hills both up and down and the saddle only moved a little forward in the 7th mile when she was super sweaty. I think I can tweak this saddle enough to make it work :)

 

I also lengthened my stirrups a half a hole. More in the "me" section.

 

The halter/bridle rocks. It is so great to be able to slip the bit out of her mouth quickly without removing the entire headstall and risk her running off.

 

Me:

My knee didn't hurt!! I was really worried about that at the start since our 5 mile ride at Fant's grove made it kill. I did lengthen the stirrups a half a hole and while they felt too long, my knee thanked me. I just need to adapt to the longer leg. I think I may move endurance stirrups up on my "want list".

 

I felt in control the majority of the time. The only time she felt really borderline not listening at all was when either that gelding was galloping up on us from behind or she had locked onto a horse in front. I had to circle her sharply once in the first mile to get her focused again, but overall she walked when I asked.

 

At mile 7 my legs started to hurt. Right where your thigh meets your butt in the back (your "thass"). I'm not sure if it was more muscle fatigue or if I was landing and rubbing. I will monitor that and see if I might want to add a fleece seat cover to help. It wasn't my underwear. I know a lot of distance riders have issues with underwear and go without, but this wasn't from that.

 

My shoulders were pretty sore yesterday from her pulling on my arms at times. I don't know how to really fix that beyond going to more rides. I understand the importance of being able to control your horse at all times, but there is only so much you can do in an arena or on a trail alone. You just can't simulate the competitive atmosphere at a ride.

 

I am very happy with how everything went!! It was a ton of fun and I think these are a great way to condition. The results are not up yet, so I don't know how we did overall. I will let you know once they are up.

 

There is a Halloween ride at the end of the month but with this ride and the hubs flying off for a marathon this weekend, our fun budget is eaten up for October. There is a ride November 10th that we are aiming for. Can't wait!